


You're Not Trash, You're a Person

by skyhillian



Category: Game Grumps
Genre: Gen, dan's a worried lil bean
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-29
Updated: 2017-05-29
Packaged: 2018-11-06 13:58:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 867
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11037606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skyhillian/pseuds/skyhillian
Summary: Dan is worried about the way Holly talks about herself.





	You're Not Trash, You're a Person

**Author's Note:**

  * For [HerbertBest](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HerbertBest/gifts).



Dan frowns at his phone as he scrolls through his Instagram feed. He only follows a handful of people, so it’s not uncommon for his feed to be taken up by only one person sometimes. Right now, it’s mostly Holly, showing off her outfits for the Ren Faire, which he is most  _ definitely  _ skipping this year even though he loves the Ren Faire. He’s single right now, but he’s starting to think that the Ren Faire is just the Harbinger of Bad Times™, and he’s gonna sit this one out.

Holly’s pictures, as usual, are adorable. He loves her Strix cosplay, especially when she pairs it up with plain old civilian clothing. Her cute smile paired with fangs and whited-out eyes is oddly adorable. The thing that’s bothering him, however, is that she keeps calling herself trash or a trashpile, or some other variant of the term. He knows that it’s mostly said in jest, but he  _ also  _ knows that Holly gets down on herself a lot and she tries to cover it up sometimes with humor. He makes a mental note to talk to her the next time he sees her.

~

A couple of days pass before Dan sees Holly again. He’s heading for the kitchenette in search of a small snack while Arin takes a bathroom break when he notices Holly searching for something in one of the cupboards. She’s standing on her tippy toes trying to reach whatever it is, and she’s grumbling quietly to herself. Dan pads up behind her and she squeaks in surprise when his arm comes over her head so he can grab the box of crackers she was trying to get to.

“Sorry, Holls,” Dan says sheepishly, “didn’t mean to scare you, there.” Holly takes the crackers from him and pulls a sleeve of them from the box. She holds it out to Dan and he gratefully takes a few of them. 

“It’s okay,” Holly assures him before popping one of the snacks into her mouth. She leans up against the counter, and Dan quickly nudges the cupboard door out of the way so that she doesn’t clock herself in the temple with it. Her cheeks flush pink and she giggles out a quiet thanks. “We missed you at the Ren Faire!”

“Aw,” Dan says with a goofy smile on his face. “Were there no other Magical Sheep Princesses for you guys to spend time with?” Holly snorts loudly and Dan can’t help but laugh. “I’d’ve love to have gone but, y’know…” He trails off. 

“Well, hopefully you’ve broken the curse and you can go next year!” 

“Hopefully next year I have  _ time _ to go to the Ren Faire,” he mumbles before shoving an entire cracker into his mouth. Once he finishes his mouthful, he comments on Holly’s awesome Strix cosplay. Her eyes light up and Dan feels the pleasant warmth that always accompanies the knowledge that he’s made someone he loves smile. 

“I didn’t really do much, y’know,” she says. She grabs a few more crackers and offers the package to Dan again, but he politely declines. She continues talking as she puts the crackers back into the box and onto the shelf (a  _ lower one _ this time, she points out, because not  _ everyone _ in this office is a damn giant). “The Ren Faire is the perfect time for me to put my nerdy, trashbag fashion on display for the world to see.”

“I wish you wouldn’t do that,” Dan interjects, and Holly looks at him, surprised. Her dark brows furrow, and she looks confused.

“Do what?”

“Call yourself trash.” She opens her mouth to speak, and Dan holds up a hand to halt her. “I know that a lot of the time you’re joking, but like…” He squeezes one of her tiny hands in his. “I worry about you, Holls.”

“Danny,” she says softly. 

“I just… I know that you get real down on yourself sometimes and calling yourself names can be funny sometimes, but that shit can also turn into like, a self-fulfilling prophecy, y’know? Like, I used to jokingly call myself a failure, and then it kind of just hit me one day that hey, I actually do feel like a failure and calling myself one definitely isn’t helping.” Holly surprises him by wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her forehead against his chest. She smells like peaches and she’s warm against him. “I just want you to be happy, y’know?”

“I am happy,” she says, though it’s slightly muffled by Dan’s shirt. “Some days are rougher than others, but I mean, I  _ do _ love myself. It’s taken a long damn time, I’ll tell you that much, and sometimes I have to tell myself that I’m not what my anxiety and shit tells me I am.” She pulls back marginally and looks up at her friend. “I’ll try not to put myself down so much, though, okay?” 

Dan smiles and softly kisses the top of her head before hugging her tight. He can hear the bathroom door opening down the hallway, which means it’s time to get back to Grumping. “That’s all I ask,” he says before letting her go with a smile.


End file.
